The House Transportation Committee approved on Thursday a ban on electronic cigarettes on flights. The measure, which was attached to a funding bill for the Federal Aviation Administration, would extend an existing ban on smoking traditional cigarettes in-flight to include e-cigarettes.

Electronic cigarettes, or e-cigs, have been marketed in the United States since 2007. Many people believe vaping is not very harmful, perhaps because of the fanciful flavors — everything from cotton candy to tangerine. New research from UNC School of Medicine suggests the opposite may be true with evidence that cinnamon-flavored e-liquids not only harm epithelial cells, but also change immune responses in our airways.

At the Jan. 5 Carver County board meeting, the commissioners made an update to the county’s ordinances to address e-cigarettes. “The intent of the proposed amendment is two-fold,” said taxpayer services manager Laurie Davies. “It’s to include electronic delivery devices, basically e-cigarettes, into the county’s tobacco ordinances. It is not currently addressed at this point in time. We are also bringing uniformity to the two different sections within the ordinance.”

Convenience stores and gas stations in St. Paul have until April to clear their shelves of all non-menthol-flavored tobacco products. St. Paul City Council followed Minneapolis’ lead Jan. 6 when it unanimously passed an ordinance that narrows the sale of flavored tobacco products — including e-cigarettes — to adult-only tobacco stores. The ordinance addressed community concerns that flavored products are accessible to and marketed toward children.

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) is launching the latest strike in a long-running media battle between public health authorities and the tobacco industry to sway Americans’ feelings about cigarettes. Starting March 30, the CDC will roll out a $68 million ad campaign designed to help smokers quit. The campaign expands on the CDC’s three-year-old “Tips From Former Smokers” series, which enlists real people who've been ravaged by smoking. And for the first time, the new ads will also include former e-cigarette users.